2,3,3,3-tetrafluoropropene (hereinafter occasionally referred to as “HFC-1234yf”) is attracting attention as a constituent of a mixed refrigerant that serves as a substitute for CFC.
As one example of a process for producing HFC-1234yf, Non-Patent Document 1 discloses a method comprising only one step: reacting CF3CF2CH2X (X=Cl or I) with zinc (Zn) in ethanol. However, this process is not suitable for industrial production because of the high cost of zinc and production of wastes.
Patent Documents 1 to 5 and Non-Patent Documents 2 and 3 disclose alternative methods of HFC-1234yf production. However, they also have some drawbacks, such as a difficulty in the production of starting material, severe reaction conditions, high costs for the reaction reagent, or a low yield. These production methods are thus not sufficiently effective for industrial production.    Patent Document 1: Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 1988-211245    Patent Document 2: Specification of U.S. Pat. No. 3,996,299    Patent Document 3: Specification of US Patent Publication No. 2006/258891    Patent Document 4: Specification of U.S. Pat. No. 2,996,555    Patent Document 5: Specification of U.S. Pat. No. 2,931,840    Non-patent document 1: J. Chem. Soc., 1957, 2193-2197    Non-patent document 2: J. Chem. Soc., 1970, 3, 414-421    Non-patent document 3: J. Flu. Chem., 1997, 82, 171-174